Powers of the Trustee 3.1.1 Except as set forth in this State Trust Agreement, the Trustee shall have the power to perform those acts necessary and desirable to accomplish the purposes of the State Mitigation Trust, which shall be exercised in an efficient and expeditious manner in furtherance of and in a manner consistent with the purposes of this State Trust Agreement and the Consent Decree. Subject to the limitations on liability set forth in subparagraph 3.5.2, the Trustee shall act in accordance with the current professional standards of care and with the diligence, skill, and care expected for the administration of such a Trust. The Trustee shall have only such duties, rights, powers, and privileges expressly set forth in the Consent Decree, this State Trust Agreement, and as otherwise provided by the Delaware Act. No implied duties (including fiduciary duties) shall be read into this State Trust against Wilmington Trust, N.A., acting as the Trustee.
3.1.2 Upon the Trust Effective Date, the powers of the Trustee shall include the following:
3.1.2.1 To receive, manage, invest, reinvest, supervise, and protect the Trust Assets as provided in Paragraph 3.2 of this State Trust Agreement or to engage a professional investment manager (“Investment Manager”) to receive, manage, invest, reinvest, supervise, and protect the Trust Assets as provided in Paragraph 3.2 for the benefit of the Beneficiaries. The Trustee appoints Wilmington Trust, N.A. as the Investment Manager for the State Mitigation Trust pursuant to an Investment Management Agreement entered into on the Trust Effective Date to manage the Trust Assets in accordance with Paragraph 3.2;
3.1.2.2 To establish and maintain a public-facing website onto which it will post all materials as required hereunder;
3.1.2.3 To establish and maintain a secure method of internet-based communications for the use of the Trustee and the Beneficiaries;
3.1.2.4 To hold title to property in the name of the Trustee in its capacity as such;
3.1.2.5 To incur, and pay from the Trust Administration Cost Subaccount, any and all customary and commercially reasonable charges and expenses upon or connected with the administration of this State Mitigation Trust in the discharge of its obligations hereunder, including 98% of Start-up Costs and 98% of Shared State and Indian Tribe Administration Costs;
3.1.2.6 To engage and compensate professionals to assist the Trustee in accordance with this State Trust Agreement, including, but not limited to, legal, environmental, investment, accounting, tax, website, and third-party auditing professionals, or internet service providers, or insurance providers. Such third-party auditing professionals may be used by the Trustee to audit and/or review expenditures to verify that they comport with the requirements and limitations on use of Trust Funds, as set forth herein. The Trustee may initiate such an audit and/or review on its own initiative or in response to credible reports or suggestions that such review or audit is appropriate. The Trustee shall have an annual independent audit prepared and posted on the website. In its sole discretion, the United States may waive the requirement of an annual audit starting in year ten or at an earlier time in order to preserve Trust Funds;
3.1.2.7 To engage and compensate professionals to assist the Trustee in requesting a Private Letter Ruling from the IRS: (1) that the State Mitigation Trust will be treated as a Qualified Settlement Fund under 26 C.F.R. § 1.468B-1; (2) that all investment income earned on the Trust Assets will be excludible from gross income under Section 115 of the Internal Revenue Code, 26 U.S.C. § 115; and (3) on any federal tax matter that the Tax Professionals reasonably believe is necessary to support the rulings in (1) and
Administration of the Trust (a) The Trustee shall administer the Trust Property for the benefit of the Unitholders. In engaging in such activities, the Trustee shall follow or cause to be followed collection procedures in accordance with the terms of the Trust Agreement, the Underlying Securities, the Swap Agreement, the indemnification offered by the Depositor pursuant to Section 10.05(b) and the Guarantee. The duties of the Trustee shall be performed in accordance with applicable local, State and Federal law.
(b) Subject to Article X, the Trustee is hereby authorized to perform, and from time to time hereafter, shall perform only those acts which are described in the Trust Agreement as obligations of the Trustee. Notwithstanding the generality of the foregoing, the Trustee is hereby specifically authorized to do the following on behalf of the Trust: to issue the Certificates evidencing Units; to execute and deliver and perform its obligations and exercise its rights under the Swap Agreement; to establish and maintain the Unit Account hereunder; to accept delivery of the Underlying Securities and the Swap Agreement; to pledge the assets of the Trust (including the Underlying Securities) to secure the obligations of the Trust including obligations under the Swap Agreement; to sell the Underlying Securities through the Selling Agent in accordance with Section 9.05; to make Permitted Investments pursuant to Section 3.06; to liquidate the Trust pursuant to Article IX and to make distributions pursuant to Article IV.
(c) Notwithstanding anything to the contrary herein, the Trust shall not engage in any business or activities other than receiving the Underlying Securities and any Credit Support or other Trust Property and entering into the Swap Agreement as provided herein, holding the Underlying Securities, the Swap Agreement and any Credit Support (or other Trust Property), issuing Certificates evidencing Units, making Permitted Investments in accordance with Section 3.06 and performing its obligations hereunder and under the Swap Agreement; provided, however, that during its existence the Trust shall not engage in any business or activity which will cause it to be or become an open-end investment company, unit investment trust or face-amount certificate company that is or is required to be registered under Section 8 of the Investment Company Act, or to be or become a closed-end investment company required to be registered, but not registered, under the Investment Company Act.
(d) The Trustee shall not sell, assign, pledge or otherwise transfer the Underlying Securities, the Swap Agreement, any Credit Support or other Trust Property, or any interest of the Trust therein, to any Person or Persons, except to a successor trustee as provided in Section 10.07, through the Selling Agent in accordance with Section 9.05, in accordance with Section 10.02(a)(x), as required under any Swap Agreement or as otherwise expressly permitted hereunder. This section shall not be construed to prohibit transfers of the Units.
(e) The Trustee shall have the legal power to exercise all of the rights, powers and privileges of holders of the Underlying Securities in which the Units evidence an interest; provided, however, that the exercise of such powers shall be subject to the provisions of this Section 3.02, Article X and the other provisions hereof. However, neither the Trustee (except as specifically provided herein or in the TIA) nor the Depositor shall be under any obligation whatsoever to appear in, prosecute or defend any action, suit or other proceeding in respect of Underlying Securities or Units.
(f) Except for actions expressly authorized by the Trust Agreement, the Trustee shall not take actions reasonably likely to (nor fail to take actions, if such failure would be reasonably likely to) (i) impair the interests of the Trust in any Underlying Security, any Credit Support, the Swap Agreement or the Guarantee (or any other Trust Property); (ii) impair the value of any Underlying Security, any Credit Support, the Swap Agreement or the Guarantee (or any other Trust Property); or (iii) alter the classification of a Trust for U.S. federal income tax purposes.
(g) Except as expressly provided in the Trust Agreement, the Trustee shall have no power to vary the corpus of the Trust Property including by (i) accepting any substitute obligation or asset for a Underlying Security or any Credit Support, (ii) entering into any amendment or modification of the Swap Agreement or the Underlying Securities, (iii) accepting any substitute guarantee for the Guarantee, (iv) adding any other investment, obligation or security to the Trust Property, (v) withdrawing from the Trust Property any Underlying Securities or Credit Support, (vi) terminating the Swap Agreement except in accordance with its terms or (vii) rejecting or otherwise failing to accept the continuing benefits of the Guarantee.
Powers of the Trustees Without limiting the provisions of Section 5.1, the Trustees shall have power and authority:
5.3.1. To operate as, and to carry on the business of, an investment company, and exercise all the powers necessary and appropriate to the conduct of such operations;
5.3.2. To invest and reinvest cash and cash items, to hold cash uninvested, and to subscribe for, invest in, reinvest in, purchase or otherwise acquire, own, hold, pledge, sell, assign, transfer, exchange, distribute, write options on, lend or otherwise deal in or dispose of contracts for the future acquisition or delivery of all types of securities, futures contracts and options thereon, and forward currency contracts of every nature and kind, including, without limitation, all types of bonds, debentures, stocks, preferred stocks, negotiable or non-negotiable instruments, obligations, evidences of indebtedness, certificates of deposit or indebtedness, commercial paper, repurchase agreements, bankers’ acceptances, and other securities of any kind, issued, created, guaranteed, or sponsored by any and all Persons, including, without limitation, states, territories, and possessions of the United States and the District of Columbia and any political subdivision, agency, or instrumentality thereof, any foreign government or any political subdivision of the U.S. Government or any foreign government, or any international instrumentality or organization, or by any bank or savings institution, or by any corporation or organization organized under the laws of the United States or of any state, territory, or possession thereof, or by any corporation or organization organized under any foreign law, or in “when issued” contracts for any such securities, futures contracts and options thereon, and forward currency contracts, to change the investments of the assets of the Trust; and to exercise any and all rights, powers, and privileges of ownership or interest in respect of any and all such investments of every kind and description, including, without limitation, the right to consent and otherwise act with respect thereto, with power to designate one or more Persons, to exercise any of said rights, powers, and privileges in respect of any of said instruments;
5.3.3. To sell, exchange, lend, pledge, mortgage, hypothecate, lease, or write options with respect to or otherwise deal in any property rights relating to any or all of the assets of the Trust or any Series;
5.3.4. To vote or give assent, or exercise any rights of ownership, with respect to stock or other securities or property; and to execute and deliver proxies or powers of attorney to such person or persons as the Trustees shall deem proper, granting to such person or persons such power and discretion with relation to securities or property as the Trustees shall deem proper;
5.3.5. To exercise powers and right of subscription or otherwise which in any manner arise out of ownership of securities;
5.3.6. To hold any security or property in a form not indicating that it is Trust Property, whether in bearer, book entry, unregistered or other negotiable form, or in its own name or in the name of a custodian or subcustodian or a nominee or nominees or otherwise or to authorize the custodian or a subcustodian or a nominee or nominees to deposit the same in a securities depository, subject in each case to the applicable provisions of the 1940 Act;
5.3.7. To consent to, or participate in, any plan for the reorganization, consolidation or merger of any corporation or issuer of any security which is held in the Trust; to consent to any contract, lease, mortgage, purchase or sale of property by such corporation or issuer; and to pay calls or subscriptions with respect to any security held in the Trust;
5.3.8. To join with other security holders in acting through a committee, depositary, voting trustee or otherwise, and in that connection to deposit any security with, or transfer any security to, any such committee, depositary or trustee, and to delegate to them such power and authority with relation to any security (whether or not so deposited or transferred) as the Trustees shall deem proper, and to agree to pay, and to pay, such portion of the expenses and compensation of such committee, depositary or trustee as the Trustees shall deem proper;
5.3.9. To litigate, compromise, arbitrate, settle or otherwise adjust claims in favor of or against the Trust or a Series, or any matter in controversy, including but not limited to claims for taxes;
5.3.10. To enter into joint ventures, general or limited partnerships and any other combinations or associations;
5.3.11. To borrow funds or other property in the name of the Trust or Series exclusively for Trust purposes;
5.3.12. To endorse or guarantee the payment of any notes or other obligations of any Person; to make contracts of guaranty or suretyship, or otherwise assume liability for payment thereof;
5.3.13. Subject to ARTICLE IX, to purchase and pay for entirely out of Trust Property such insurance as the Trustees may deem necessary, desirable or appropriate for the conduct of the business, including, without limitation, insurance policies insuring the assets of the Trust or payment of distributions and principal on its Series investments, and insurance policies insuring the Shareholders, Trustees, officers, employees, agents, Investment Adviser, Principal Underwriters, or independent contractors of the Trust, individually against all claims and liabilities of every nature arising by reason of holding Shares, holding, being or having held any such office or position, or by reason of any action alleged to have been taken or omitted by any such Person as Trustee, officer, employee, agent, Investment Adviser, Principal Underwriter, or independent contractor, including any action taken or omitted that may be determined to constitute negligence;
5.3.14. Subject to the provisions of Section 3804 of the Delaware Act, to allocate assets, liabilities and expenses of the Trust to a particular Series or to apportion the same between or among two or more Series, provided that any liabilities or expenses incurred by a particular Series shall be payable solely out of the assets of that Series;
5.3.15. To adopt, establish and carry out pension, profit-sharing, share bonus, share purchase, savings, thrift and other retirement, incentive and benefit plans, trusts and provisions, including the purchasing of life insurance and annuity contracts as a means of providing such retirement and other benefits, for any or all of the Trustees, officers, employees and agents of the Trust;
5.3.16. To adopt, amend and repeal By-Laws not inconsistent with this Declaration of Trust providing for the regulation and management of the affairs of the Trust;
5.3.17. To elect and remove such officers and appoint and terminate such agents as they consider appropriate;
5.3.18. To appoint from their own and establish and terminate one or more committees consisting of two or more Trustees and such persons as may be designated by the Board of Trustees who may exercise the powers and authority of the Board of Trustees to the extent that the Trustees determine and to adopt a committee charter providing for such responsibilities;
5.3.19. To employ one or more custodians of the assets of the Trust and may authorize such custodians to employ subcustodians and to deposit all or any part of such assets in a system or systems for the central handling of securities or with a Federal Reserve Bank;
5.3.20. To retain one or more transfer agents or shareholder servicing agents;
5.3.21. To provide for the issuance and distribution of Shares by the Trust directly or through one or more Principal Underwriters or otherwise;
5.3.22. To set record dates for the determination of Shareholders with respect to various matters; declare and pay dividends and distributions to Shareholders of each Series from the assets of such Series;
5.3.23. To establish from time to time separate and distinct Series with separately defined investment objectives and policies and distinct investment purposes in accordance with ARTICLE III hereof;
5.3.24. To interpret the investment policies, practices or limitations of any Series;
5.3.25. To establish, from time to time, a minimum investment for Shareholders in the Trust or in one or more Series, or to require the redemption of the Shares of any Shareholder whose investment is less than such minimum upon giving notice to such Shareholder or in accordance with Section 8.4;
5.3.26. To delegate such authority as they consider desirable to any officer of the Trust, to any committee of the Trustees and to any agent or employee of the Trust or to any such custodian, transfer or servicing agents, Investment Adviser or Principal Underwriter; and
5.3.27. In general to carry on any other business in connection with or incidental to any of the foregoing powers, to do everything necessary, suitable or proper for the accomplishment of any purpose or the attainment of any object or the furtherance of any power set forth herein, either alone or in association with others, and to do every other act or thing incidental or appurtenant to or arising from the businesses, purposes, objects or powers set forth above. The Trust shall not be limited to investing in obligations maturing before the possible termination of the Trust or one or more of its Series and the Trust shall not be required to diversify each individual Series of the Trust. The Trust shall not in any way be bound or limited by any present or future law or custom in regard to investment by fiduciaries. The Trust shall not be required to obtain any court order to deal with any assets of the Trust or take any other action hereunder.